Anam Cara
A Book of Celtic Wisdom

By John O'Donohue

Published by Harper Collins

ISBN: 0-06-092943-X

It is time to sing the praises of another cartographer of soul whose imaginative vision is as poetic, passionate, and philosophical as Thomas Moore's. Just listen to how Catholic priest and scholar John O'Donohue begins Anam Cara: "It is strange to be here. The mystery never leaves you alone. Behind your image, below your words, above your thoughts, the silence of another world exists. A world lives within you. No one else can bring you news of this inner world."

Tapping into the rich mine of Celtic spirituality, poetry, and stories, O'Donohue explores the mystery of friendship where two souls are united in awareness, intimacy, and mutuality. He moves on to a celebration of the spirituality of the senses, which are bridges to the world and thresholds of soul. Next O'Donohue examines the luminous virtues of solitude. Here he salutes silence as the sister of the Divine. A chapter on work as a poetics of growth is followed by "Aging: the Beauty of the Inner Harvest." For O'Donohue old age is a time of living in rhythm with your soul, your life, and the Divine. The final chapter affirms death as an invitation to freedom.

Anam Cara will stir your soul and stoke the fires of your imagination. You'll come away from this masterwork with fresh appreciation of longing as the presence of the divine, the heart as the inner face of your life, the body as a sacrament, spirituality as the art of transfiguration, solitude as the illumination of your soul, and the precious gift of being present at the sacrament of someone's death.

By Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat